Safe



SePt- 4 1951 c. B. QUINN 2,566,370

SAFE

Filed March l0, 1947 Patented Sept. 4, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE (Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as

amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) 7 Claims.

The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to safes such as iile cabinets of the type provided with a combination lock.

The drawers of practically all types of file cabinets are provided with removable divider rods on which separator cards, etc., are slidably mounted. In such devices the forward end of the rod is provided with a knob which is located exteriorly of `the front wall of the drawer, and the knob is pro vided with threads or other fastening means for cooperation with the front wall of the drawer to releasably secure the rod against removal. In some safes of this type the removal of the rod from the drawer on which the combination lock is mounted exposes the locking bolt to surreptitious manipulation by means of a wire extended through the opening from which the rod has been withdrawn, thereby permitting the unauthorized opening of the safe without operation of the combination.

It is an object of the present inventionto provide a simple and inexpensive device for preventing access to the locking bolt through the abovementioned opening.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such a device which may be easily and quickly installed without in any way mutilating or recom structing the safe itself.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate one embodiment of the invention,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the interior of a safe drawer provided with a combination lock and in which a security device incorporating the present invention is installed.

Figure 2 is a similar view showing the back wall of the lock casing removed and the safety device about to be installed.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of the front portion of the drawer showing the safety device installed and the back plate of the lock compartment restored to its normal position.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the safety device per se, and

Figures 5, 6, and '7 are detail views showing the initial, intermediate and nal angular positions of the safety device during the various stages of its installation.

Referring to the drawings in greater detail, the numeral I indicates generally a drawer of a le cabinet or safe of the type generally used in offices. In many instances such cabinets or safes are provided with a lock, such as a combination lock, for the upper drawer and the latter is interlocked with the lower drawers. It is to this type of lockable drawer that the present invention relates.

In the present instance, as is common. in lireproof office safes, a vertical wall 2 is spaced from the front wall 3 so as to provide a compartment in which heat insulating material 4 may be installed, and spaced from the vertical wall 2 is a wall 5 which serves to provide a lock compartment in which is mounted a lock 5 and its bolt l. The lower edge of the plate 5 is detachably secured to a cross plate 5'.

These drawers are usually provided with a fcllower plate which is slidably mounted on rods 8, the forward ends of such rods being fixed to a Un shaped member 9 secured to a bottom A of the drawer. The ilanges il which form the arms of the U-shaped member 3 are each formed with a notch I0 in its upper edge, and the forward flange 9' is placed in contact with the cross-plate 5. A divider rod is also usually employed for slid-n ably supporting or securing a plurality of separator cards and such rod is indicated in the pres ent instance by the numeral II. The rod II eX- tends through the opening I2 in the front plate 3 of the drawer, passes through a tubular element I3 which connects the plates 2 and 3, spans the space between the plates 2 and 5', and extends through the notches I0 to the rear of the drawer, The rod is usually releasably secured in position by means of a clip or threads associated with its knob and the edge of opening I2.

As mentioned hereinbefore and as will be readily apparent from an inspection of Figure 3 of the drawings, if the divider rod II is removed from the drawer, a wire may be passed through the tube I3 and caused to manipulate the lock bolt l to release the drawer without operating the lock 6 in the manner intended.

This unauthorized operation of the lock bolt 'I may be prevented, however, by the use of a member interposed between the divider rod and the lock bolt l, and in the present instance such a member takes the form of a tube I4 which is mounted in alignment Iwith the tube I3 and which is provided with a plate I5 on its inner end lby means of which it may be secured in position. The plate I5 is provided with an arcuate edge I6 corresponding to the curvature of the arcuate notch Il) in the fianges 9' of member 9 and is provided with an opposed straight edge Il. By reason of this shape of the securing plate I5,

which may or may not be formed integrally with the tube I4, the tube may be installed in the manner indicated in Figures 5, 6, and 7, it being understood, of course, that the rear plate 5 and the divider rod I I are first removed and the forward ilange 9 and plate 5 forced apart at their upper edges a distance suicient to permit the entrance of the y'plate I5 therebetween. The tube and plate are first inserted in the manner shown in Figure 5 and the tube and plate are then turned to an angle of 180 as shown in Figures 6 vand 7 so that the straight edge of the plate I5 engages in back of the forward ilange 9. The forward ilange 9 may then be forced back to approximately its original position to thereby clamp the plate I5 in position; also, if desired the plate may be spot welded to the iiange. If desired, the plate may be in the form of a pair-of wings formed by splitting a tube longitudinallt7 throughout about one half its length bendingr the sections at right angles to thebody of the tube and flattening them.

With the tube Id in position as shown and described herein, it is apparent that surreptitious access to the lock bolt? is entirely eliminated and unauthorized opening of the safe through the medium of the divider rod opening completely avoided.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described what I now consider to be the preferred form of the invention, but since various minor changes may be made in structural details without departing from the spirit of the invention, it is intended that such changes be included within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim: Y

1. The combination with a safe drawer provided 'with spaced vertical walls at its front end to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment and a removable divider rod extending from the exterior oi' the drawer and across the space between said walls, of means for separating the divider rod and bolt and spannin the space between said walls.

2. The combination with a safe drawer provided with spaced Vertical walls at its front end to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment and -a removable divider rod extending from `the exterior of the drawer and across the space between said walls, of a tube spanning the space between said walls andencircling a portion of the divider rod.

3. The combination with a safe drawer provided with spaced vertical walls at its frontend to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment and a removable divider rod extending from the exterior of the drawer and across the space between said walls, of a tube spanning the space between said lwalls and encircling a portion of the divider rod, and means on one end of the tube for securing the same in position.

4. The combination with a safe drawer provided with spaced vertical. walls at its front end to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment and a removable divider rod extending from the exterior of the drawer and across the space between said walls, of a tube spanning the space between said walls and enl circling a portion of the divider rod, and a flange on one end of the tube for securing the tube in position.

5. The combination with a safe drawer provided with spaced vertical walls at its front end to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment, a removable divider rod extending from the exterior of the drawer and across the space between said walls, and a follower rod supporting plate provided with an arcuate notch in its upper edge, of a member disposed between said vertical walls, and a ange on one end of said member for securing the latter in position, said ange provided with an arcuate edge corresponding with the arcuate notch in said supporting plate and with an opposed straight edge, whereby the flange may be passed through the arcuate notch and then rotated to overlap a portion of the supporting plate.

6. The combination with a safe drawer provided with spaced vertical walls at its front end to provide a lock compartment, a locking bolt in the compartment, a removable divider rod extending from the exterior of the drawer and across the space between said walls, and a foly lower rod supporting plate provided with an arcuate notch in its upper edge, of a tube disposed between said vertical Walls, and a flange on one end' of said tube for securing the latter in position, said iiange provided with an arcuate edge corresponding with the arcuate notch in said supporting plate and with an opposed straight edge, whereby the ange may be passed through the arcuate notch and then related to overlap a portion of the supporting plate.

7. Means for preventing surreptitious access to the locking bolt of a le cabinet comprising a tube, andan elongated plate on the end of the tube, said plate having an arcuate edge and an opposed straight edge.

CHARLES B. QUINN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Y 1 Date 

